West Virginia Democrat. [volume] (Charles Town, W. Va.) 1885-1890, 1887-11-18
THE CAUSES OF THE DEPRESSED
CONDITION OF AGRICULTURE.

has recently addressed Farmers
Convention on this subject, and we
quote few extracts from his adj
dress, which every farmer in the
land should read and re- read:
/ have for years regarded the
study of this question as one Of the
highest duties of patriotism and its
solution as a matter OF almost bound
less Importance. l have studied
every phase of it and the true soiu-
ton was slow to come to my mind
in it's full significance. 4 \ 4 The
fact of the matter is, there is great,
unsupported leakage. The farmer
makes: but what he makes is not
his own:-it goes into bag with
holes. A tariff for protection has
the same effect, as if the farmer had
holes in his pockets.
So insidious is this form of taxa
ton that it is scarcely suspectt d..
We are constantly talking OF the
size of our State and county taxes
which are like a drop in the bucket
as compared with what the present
tariff takes from us. The tariff tax
takes out of your pocket every year
vastly more money than the State
tax. The State tax of Georgia is
$1,000,000 year: our population is
1,500,000: this is about &C cents for
every man, woman and child.
The population of the U. ). in
1880 was in round numbers so mil
lions: the Federal tax in 1882 ex-
ceeded 400 millions: this was rs per
head for every man, woman and
child.
There are in the u. S. ten million
voters: the Federal tax being $400
million, this is $40 for each and
every voter.
Here then we have the State gov
eminent costing only 66 cents for
every man, woman and child, while
the Federal government costs So for
every man, woman and child. Again
the State government costs per vo
ter only 1888, and the Federal gov
eminent costs $40 per voter.
This is huge fact. Think of it..
Try and comprehend it.
Let us apply these facts to West
Va. Our population is, say 700,-
900, then our Federal tax is $4,000
900. Our State tax is only about
100000. In other words our State
government costs six hundred thous-
and and the Federal government,
five millions, six hundred thousand.
Let us apply these facts to Jetfer-
son. Our population is, say $4,000;
the Federal tax is equal to rs for
every man, woman and child; then
Jefferson pays in Federal taxes, ev-
cry year, $4,000. The County
levy is about $4,000.
But these figures and these re-
marks apply to the tariff insofar as
it takes money from a farmer, wiz:
One not a beneficiary ofprotection,
and puts it in tie pubic Treasury
Let us next consider the tariff inso-
far as it takes money from farmer,
which, instead of going into the
Treasury, goes into the private peck
cts of the class who are protected
against competition. Let us cousid-
err the tariff insofar as it takes mon
ey from the many and gives it to
the favored few. The present tariff
does not pretend to be a tariff for
revenue; it is a tariff for protection.
1t is for 81 of revenue and for So of
protection. What is tariff for pro-
lection ? II is tax on foreign
goods to prevent them. from compel
inc with home made goods. If for
eign goods must pay heavy tax
before they can come into this coun-
try, then the protected manufacture
er can exact higher prices. If a
suit of clothes costs in England $40,
the tariff.tax is S.. Hence they
cannot be sold in this country for
less than SIS. Hence the American
manufacturer is protected to the ex-
tent of S.. That is to say, he can
exact S. which he could not exact if
English clothes were not taxed.
The avowed object of the present
tariff is to compel our American
people TO pay higher prices to the
benefciaries ofprotection. If a $40
English suit of clothes comes into
this country, the tax on it is So.
The merchant pays this tax into
the Treasury, but he gets it back
when he sells the clothes the tax
comes out of the man who consumes
the clothes. If they are American
goods, the man who consumes them
pays tax, but the tax goes into the
pockets of the protected manufac-
turer.
Those who have studied the sub
ject say that protection amounts to
S. for every one dollar of revenue.
The protection organs claim that the
protection amounts only to $3.50.
That is to say, the tariff tax puts
into the pockets of the protected
classes $3.50 for every one dollar
A. 4. $3.50 Into tho Troncnrr